New Delhi, The Supreme Court on Friday sought a response from the Centre on a fresh plea challenging the validity of a provision of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.
A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi issued notice to the Centre on the plea and tagged it with pending pleas raising similar issue.
The fresh petition, filed by Anjali Bhardwaj and Amrita Johri, has sought a direction to declare that provisions of the 2023 Act shall not apply to processing, analysis, dissemination or re-publication of personal data accessed and obtained under the Right to Information Act, 2005.
It also sought a direction that provisions of the 2023 Act would not apply to processing of personal data in public interest, including by those blowing the whistle on corruption, misuse of public office or commission of an offence.
The plea has sought a declaration that Section 44 of the 2023 Act, insofar as it substitutes clause of Section 8 of the Right to Information Act, is unconstitutional, being ultra vires of Articles 14 and 19 of the Constitution, for 'impermissibly curtailing the fundamental right to information'.
The bench has posted the matter for hearing on March 23.
